Many nutritional supplements are available at various retail outlets, in many forms, including pills, powders, and liquids intended for human consumption.
One nutritional supplement that has become popular is creatine, whose IUPAC name is 2-(carbamimidoyl-methyl-amino)acetic acid, (CAS No. 57-00-1). Creatine occurs naturally in muscle and is believed to be an essential component in energy-producing metabolism and normal muscle function and growth. It is also believed by many to be useful to bodybuilders for increasing muscle mass, i.e., muscle-building.
Creatine is typically offered in powder, pill or capsule form. However, no aqueous-based formulations containing appreciable amounts of creatine, intended for oral human consumption, are readily available in the marketplace. This is because creatine is unstable in aqueous systems, in which it rearranges to creatinine. Creatinine is the breakdown product of creatine; creatinine has no effect on muscle protein.